Tag: wwe wrestlemania

AJ Styles vs. Logan Paul official for WWE WrestleMania 41

Posted on by Joseph Currier

With WrestleMania fast approaching, WWE has made a new match official for the show.

AJ Styles vs. Logan Paul is now confirmed for the WrestleMania 41 card. WWE posted a video with general manager Adam Pearce announcing the match after a confrontation between Styles and Paul took place on Monday’s episode of Raw in London.

The feud between Styles and Paul has been progressing since Paul eliminated Styles from the 2025 Royal Rumble. Styles challenged Paul to face him in London during their confrontation today, but Paul said he does not fight for free and suggested WrestleMania as the right venue for their match. Things turned physical when Paul went for a cheap shot. Styles was initially able to fight him off until Paul used a low blow and laid Styles out with the Paulverizer.

This will be Styles’ ninth time competing at WrestleMania. For Paul, it’s his fourth WrestleMania match.

We are now less than three weeks away from WrestleMania, which will be held in Las Vegas on Saturday, April 19 and Sunday, April 20. Here is everything that has been confirmed for the show so far:

  • Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes defends against John Cena
  • World Heavyweight Champion Gunther defends against Jey Uso
  • WWE Women’s Champion Tiffany Stratton defends against Charlotte Flair
  • Women’s World Champion IYO SKY defends against Bianca Belair
  • Roman Reigns vs. CM Punk vs. Seth Rollins (will main event night one)
  • Randy Orton vs. Kevin Owens
  • AJ Styles vs. Logan Paul

Roman Reigns vs. CM Punk vs. Seth Rollins official for WWE WrestleMania 41

Posted on by Ethan Renner

A triple threat match featuring three of WWE’s biggest stars is official for WrestleMania 41.

Roman Reigns vs. CM Punk vs. Seth Rollins has officially been added to the WrestleMania 41 event set for Saturday, April 19 and Sunday, April 20 in Las Vegas.

The match was officially announced late Friday in a social media post from WWE’s chief content officer Paul “Triple H” Levesque.

Reigns, Punk, and Rollins closed this week’s SmackDown show with a brawl breaking out among the three. Punk eliminated Reigns from the Royal Rumble in February after teaming with Reigns in a WarGames match at Survivor Series this past November.

Rollins and Punk have been embroiled in a rivalry on Raw that included Punk defeating Rollins on the Netflix premiere episode in January, then Rollins beating Punk in a cage match on Raw earlier this month after Reigns interfered to attack Punk.

Six bouts are official for the two-night WrestleMania 41 event. The shows will stream live on Peacock in the United States and on Netflix internationally.

The current lineup:

WWE WrestleMania 41, Saturday, April 19 & Sunday, April 20 —

  • Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes defends against John Cena
  • World Heavyweight Champion Gunther defends against Jey Uso
  • WWE Women’s Champion Tiffany Stratton defends against Charlotte Flair
  • Women’s World Champion IYO SKY defends against Bianca Belair
  • Roman Reigns vs. CM Punk vs. Seth Rollins
  • Randy Orton vs. Kevin Owens

DragonKingKarl Classic Wrestling Show: The road to the first WrestleMania

Posted on by Karl Stern

On a new DragonKingKarl Classic Wrestling Show, I continue my detailed look at the history of pro wrestling from the pages of my book: DragonKingKarl’s 1984-1985 Pro Wrestling Omnibus.

On this show, I examine February 1985 and look at the buildup to the first-ever WWF WrestleMania.

Plus, I talk MTV’s big WWF special, “Dr. D” David Schultz got fired but probably not for the reason you think, Sgt. Slaughter begins his post-WWF career, Mr. T, and more!

Click Here to Listen (sub needed)

WWE announces ‘The Roast of WrestleMania’ with comedian Tony Hinchcliffe

Posted on by Joseph Currier

WWE has officially added a new event to the schedule for WrestleMania 41 week in Las Vegas.

Closing out the weekend, “The Roast of WrestleMania Featuring Tony Hinchcliffe & Friends” will take place after WrestleMania 41 night two on Sunday, April 20. WWE and the Fontainebleau hotel are partnering together for the comedy show, which is being held at the BleauLive Theater inside of the hotel.

The roast will not be televised. It has a start time of 10 p.m. Pacific and is set to feature Hinchcliffe, other comedians who have yet to be announced, and special WWE guests. Sami Zayn, The Miz, Braun Strowman, and Paul Heyman are among those who will be appearing.

“Hinchcliffe, the internationally renowned comedian, one of the top roasters in the world and the mastermind behind Kill Tony, will bring together top comics and entertainers for an unforgettable night of laughs and huge surprises,” a press release hyped. “Set to join Hinchcliffe are WWE Superstars Sami Zayn, The Miz, Braun Strowman and Paul Heyman, and more.”

WWE is promoting the roast as a closed-doors event that could go off the rails.

“That could go off the rails in a really bad way,” Paul “Triple H” Levesque said in the announcement video. “Let’s do it!”

Tickets for the roast are going on sale to the general public this Friday (March 21) at 11 a.m. Eastern/8 a.m. Pacific. The pre-sale begins this Wednesday (March 19) at that same time.

Fontainebleau Las Vegas has been named the official hotel of WrestleMania 41 and will also host the 2025 WWE Hall of Fame ceremony, an Undertaker one-man show, and the post-WrestleMania episode of NXT.

‘Stone Cold’ Steve Austin reacts to John Cena’s WWE heel turn

Posted on by Joseph Currier

“Stone Cold” Steve Austin is interested to see how things play out after John Cena’s heel turn.

Cena shockingly turned heel at Elimination Chamber 2025, aligning with The Rock and beating down Cody Rhodes. The angle kicked off the build to Rhodes vs. Cena for the Undisputed WWE Championship, which is now official for WrestleMania 41 in Las Vegas.

The Schmo interviewed Austin at a Mint 400 race this week and asked for his thoughts on Cena’s turn. Austin said he thought it was an epic way to begin the road to WrestleMania, but he doesn’t know whether the fans will accept Cena as a heel or if this move will have just made him more of a babyface in their eyes.

“It had to happen sooner or later. Finally it happened,” Austin said. “So it’ll be interesting to see, you know, whether the people accept him as a heel or has he turned himself more babyface. I think it remains to be seen as the story unfolds. Nonetheless, they’ve kicked off an epic build into WrestleMania. And that’s what they do every single year. And this year it’s here in Las Vegas, so it’s going to be pretty damn awesome.”

With Austin living in Nevada, he’s said he is open to making an appearance at WrestleMania 41. The Schmo asked if we could see him help out Rhodes against Cena.

“Hey, I haven’t been in contact with anybody, so I guess anything could happen,” Austin responded. “But I’m here to run the Mint 400 and that’s what my sights are set on. I’m not looking to Mania, I’m looking to the Mint 400. I’ve got a brand new left knee. This is my first race back, so I’m going to go out there and kick ass and see if I can do as well as I can.”

Allegiant Stadium is hosting WrestleMania 41 on Saturday, April 19 and Sunday, April 20. This is the last WrestleMania that Cena will ever compete at. He’s currently on his retirement tour and will have his final match in December 2025.

IYO SKY wins Women’s World title, will defend at WWE WrestleMania 41

Posted on by Ethan Renner

IYO SKY is the new WWE Women’s World Champion.

SKY defeated Rhea Ripley in the main event of Monday’s WWE Raw to win the Women’s World title, and is set to defend the title at WrestleMania 41 next month.

Women’s Elimination Chamber winner Bianca Belair was ringside for the Raw main event, and as things stand today, will challenge SKY for the title at WrestleMania 41 in Las Vegas.

With her win, SKY becomes a Grand Slam Champion in WWE, holding three different singles titles (WWE Women’s, Women’s World, NXT Women’s) plus a tag title (WWE Women’s Tag Team Championship), joining Ripley, Asuka, and The Four Horsewomen (Becky Lynch, Bayley, Charlotte Flair, Sasha Banks) in accomplishing the feat.

Without an obvious path to a WrestleMania match outside the Women’s World title picture, it seems likely that Ripley will be added to SKY vs. Belair in a triple threat, but that is purely speculation.

The current WWE WrestleMania 41 lineup:

WWE WrestleMania 41, Saturday, April 19 & Sunday, April 20 —

  • Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes defends against John Cena
  • WWE Women’s Champion Tiffany Stratton defends against Charlotte Flair
  • World Heavyweight Champion Gunther defends against Jey Uso
  • Women’s World Champion IYO SKY defends against Bianca Belair

Cody Rhodes vs. John Cena set for WWE WrestleMania 41

Posted on by Joseph Currier

John Cena has a chance to make history at WWE WrestleMania 41.

It will be Cody Rhodes vs. Cena for the Undisputed WWE Championship at WrestleMania in Las Vegas this April. If Cena wins, he will take sole possession of WWE’s record for the most World title reigns in history. WWE currently recognizes Cena and Ric Flair as being tied with 16 reigns each.

After coming up just short in the Royal Rumble, Cena secured his path to WrestleMania by winning the men’s Elimination Chamber match on Saturday night. CM Punk, Seth Rollins, Logan Paul, Damian Priest, and Drew McIntyre were the other wrestlers competing in the match.

The final three left at the end were Cena, Punk, and Rollins. Long-time rivals Cena and Punk shared a hug at one point before fighting each other. They also worked together against Rollins — eliminating him by hitting a Go to Sleep into an Attitude Adjustment.

Despite being eliminated, Rollins gave Punk a stomp after the match got down to its final two. Cena then applied an STF and got the win when Punk passed out.

WrestleMania 41 is taking place at Allegiant Stadium on Saturday, April 19 and Sunday, April 20. It’s the last WrestleMania that Cena will ever compete at — and he’ll be doing so as a heel. He aligned with The Rock at the end of Elimination Chamber, giving Rhodes a low blow, choking him with a tie, and bloodying him. The PLE ended with Cena and The Rock leaving together after posing over a fallen Rhodes.

Cena is in the middle of his retirement tour that will conclude with him having his final match in December 2025.

Jey Uso: WWE WrestleMania 41 is ‘do or die for me’

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Jey Uso understands just how important WWE WrestleMania 41 is to his career.

In the biggest match of his life, Uso will challenge Gunther for the World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania in Las Vegas this April. He earned the title shot by winning the 2025 men’s Royal Rumble — a victory that surprised most fans given how much star power was in the match.

Uso told CBS Sports that he feels like people doubt him a lot, but he has a chance to prove his detractors wrong with a great showing against Gunther.

“This is do or die for me,” he said. “I feel like I am doubted a lot. A lot of people are doubting me right now, Uce. I’m not supposed to be in this position. I know that. They know that. But I’m going to shut them all up.”

This is also a chance for Uso to make up for the lackluster match he had at WrestleMania 40 last year. He faced off against his twin brother Jimmy Uso at that event, with Jey admitting that he felt like they let everyone down by not delivering a great performance. Jey told CBS Sports that, while he’s had standout matches as a tag team competitor in the past, he wants to show he can do the same as a singles wrestler.

“I always thought we put on great matches. If you look at it, we had great matches with The Wyatt Family, The Shield, The New Day. Now, I feel like I’ve had a couple of good matches but not ones that stick in people’s minds,” Uso said. “This is redemption time on the big stage. The pressure is on.”

Uso said he feels like Gunther is the “best in-ring performer.” Their WrestleMania title bout is a rematch from January’s episode of Saturday Night’s Main Event, where Uso came up short in his attempt to dethrone Gunther.

Allegiant Stadium is hosting WrestleMania 41 on Saturday, April 19 and Sunday, April 20.

The Rock reveals WWE WrestleMania 42 dates and location

Posted on by Ethan Renner

WrestleMania is returning to New Orleans in 2026.

The Rock announced in his appearance on Friday’s SmackDown that the 42nd edition of WWE’s biggest annual event will be held in the Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana on Saturday, April 11 and Sunday, April 12, 2026.

The announcement came on Friday’s live SmackDown in New Orleans at Smoothie King Center.

It will be the third time that New Orleans has hosted a WrestleMania, but the first time since the event expanded to a two-night show. The Superdome also hosted WrestleMania 30 in 2014, and WrestleMania 34 in 2018.

It was reported earlier this month by multiple sources that New Orleans had been decided on for WrestleMania 42.

The Rock announcement on SmackDown serves as a prelude to a post-show press conference announced. The Rock will also be speaking at the press event.

In addition to his WrestleMania announcement, The Rock also had an in-ring promo segment that included challenging Cody Rhodes to be “his [The Rock’s] champion” in exchange for Cody’s soul.

Our report from Friday’s SmackDown is available here.

Charlotte Flair vs. Tiffany Stratton official for WWE WrestleMania 41

Posted on by Ethan Renner

It’s Tiffy Time for The Queen.

2025 women’s Royal Rumble winner Charlotte Flair revealed on Friday’s WWE SmackDown that she has chosen Tiffany Stratton as her WrestleMania 41 opponent, and Stratton will defend the WWE Women’s Championship against Flair in Las Vegas on April 19 or April 20 at the two-night event.

Stratton retained her WWE Women’s title by disqualification against Nia Jax on Friday’s SmackDown after Candice LeRae interfered. A brawl ensued with Stratton, Jax, LeRae, and Hall of Famer Trish Stratus who was ringside for the match, with Jax and LeRae leaving Stratton and Stratus laying.

As the Women’s Champion was laid out on the mat, Flair entered and told Stratton that she was choosing her as her WrestleMania 41 opponent.

The first two matches are now official for WrestleMania 41, as Jey Uso announced on this week’s Raw that he will challenge Gunther for the World Heavyweight Championship at the event.

With this week’s announcements from the Royal Rumble winners, the winner of the men’s Elimination Chamber match on March 1 will challenge Cody Rhodes for the Undisputed WWE Championship at Mania, and the winner of the women’s Chamber match will take on Women’s World Champion Rhea Ripley.

WrestleMania 41 is set for Saturday, April 19 and Sunday, April 20 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. The lineup for the show to this point:

  • World Heavyweight Champion Gunther defends against Jey Uso
  • WWE Women’s Champion Tiffany Stratton defends against Charlotte Flair
  • Undisputed WWE Champion Cody Rhodes defends against men’s Elimination Chamber winner
  • Women’s World Champion Rhea Ripley defends against women’s Elimination Chamber winner

WWE reportedly set on location for WrestleMania 42

Posted on by Josh Nason

Image: WWE

The reported lead contender to host WWE WrestleMania 42 is a familiar city for WWE fans.

Both WrestleVotes and Fightful reported on Thursday that New Orleans, Louisiana, is the likely spot for the company’s biggest event of the year with WrestleVotes adding the announcement will come before April’s WrestleMania 41 in Las Vegas.

Fightful noted New Orleans had been the plan for years and that some WWE partners were made aware of the location as well.

If it comes to pass, it will be the third WrestleMania New Orleans has hosted at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome with the first being WrestleMania 30 in 2014 followed by WrestleMania 34 in 2018 (pictured above). It’s one of a shortlist of facilities to host multiple WrestleManias.

The city just hosted the Super Bowl last weekend as well as January’s Sugar Bowl which was a NCAA college football playoff quarterfinal, rebounding from a January 1st terrorist attack that took the lives of 15 people and injured at least 57 others.

Jey Uso vs. Gunther World title match official for WWE WrestleMania 41

Posted on by Ethan Renner

Jey Uso has made his decision.

2025 Royal Rumble winner Jey Uso will challenge Gunther for the World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania 41 on April 19 or 20 in Las Vegas.

Uso made the announcement in the opening segment of Monday’s WWE Raw where Gunther interrupted an Uso entrance segment and beat the challenger around ringside. Gunther left the scene after being escorted away by referees and officials, but as he hit the entrance stage, Uso took the microphone in the ring and stated that he was choosing Gunther as his WrestleMania opponent. Uso got a measure of revenge for the Gunther beatdown by hitting a dive to the champ:

Gunther has held the World Heavyweight title since defeating Damian Priest for the gold at SummerSlam last August. Uso won the 2025 men’s Royal Rumble match, granting him a shot at the champion of his choosing at WrestleMania 41.

Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas will host the two-night WrestleMania 41 event on Saturday, April 19 and Sunday, April 20. The show will stream on Peacock in the United States.

Details announced for WWE World WrestleMania week convention

Posted on by Joseph Currier

After debuting in 2024, the WWE World convention is returning for WrestleMania week in Las Vegas.

The five-day convention — presented by WWE & Fanatics — is taking place at the Las Vegas Convention Center West Hall from Thursday, April 17 through Monday, April 21. It will include autograph signings, live podcast recordings, roundtable discussions with WWE wrestlers, merchandise sales, and more.

Tickets for the convention are going on sale to the general public at noon Eastern time on Monday, February 3. A pre-sale is set to begin on Wednesday, January 29.

WWE World is a replacement for the WrestleMania Axxess convention that used to happen during WrestleMania week.

“WWE World at WrestleMania 41 will feature a variety of immersive experiences for fans including a central main stage that will host roundtable discussions with top WWE Superstars, live podcast recordings, live memorabilia and autograph sales through Fanatics Live, and the largest WWE Superstore in WrestleMania history,” WWE wrote. “The event will also feature exclusive merchandise autograph sessions and meet-and-greets with WWE Superstars and Legends, in addition to immersive exhibits and memorabilia honoring WrestleMania’s 41-year history.”

Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas is hosting WrestleMania 41 on Saturday, April 19 and Sunday, April 20. It’s the first time WrestleMania has been held in Vegas since 1993.

Raw, SmackDown, NXT Stand & Deliver, and the 2025 WWE Hall of Fame ceremony will also take place from Vegas in the days surrounding WrestleMania.


WWE announces on-sale date for WrestleMania 41 individual night tickets

Posted on by Joseph Currier

Individual night tickets for WWE WrestleMania 41 will be available to purchase starting next week.

WWE announced today that individual event tickets for this year’s WrestleMania are going on sale to the general public at noon Eastern/9 a.m. Pacific next Friday (January 24). A pre-sale will begin next Wednesday (January 22).

The event is being held at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas on Saturday, April 19 and Sunday, April 20. Two-night combo tickets have been on sale since October 2024.

No matches have been made official for WrestleMania yet, but the card should start coming into focus after the Royal Rumble takes place on Saturday, February 1.

This will be the last WrestleMania that John Cena ever competes at. He’s on a retirement tour that started this month and will end in December. Cena, Cody Rhodes, Roman Reigns, CM Punk, Rhea Ripley, Bianca Belair, Logan Paul, Liv Morgan, Gunther, Rey Mysterio, Seth Rollins, Nia Jax, and Jey Uso are featured on WWE’s graphic promoting the WrestleMania 41 ticket on-sale date.

WWE and the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority have partnered together for the event, along with Raw, SmackDown, NXT Stand & Deliver, the WWE World fan convention, and the 2025 WWE Hall of Fame ceremony taking place in Las Vegas in the days surrounding WrestleMania.

Cody Rhodes vs. John Cena currently planned for WWE WrestleMania 41

Posted on by Joseph Currier

As of right now, Cody Rhodes is slated to be John Cena’s last-ever WrestleMania opponent.

Dave Meltzer confirmed in the Wrestling Observer Newsletter that, as of this moment, Rhodes vs. Cena is planned to take place this April at WrestleMania 41. If it happens, the idea behind the match would be Cena challenging Rhodes for the Undisputed WWE Championship and attempting to break the World title reign record that he currently shares with Ric Flair. However, Meltzer notes that Rhodes vs. Cena is not etched in stone and could change if Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson ends up wrestling at WrestleMania.

Meltzer wrote:

So for WrestleMania, the reports of Rhodes vs. John Cena are accurate as things stand right now. The idea of Cena challenging one of the two champions in an attempt to break the so-called record of 16 reigns that he and Flair share has been a working idea for months. At first it was the Raw title given Rhodes vs. Rock would be for the other title and People’s belt. This isn’t etched in stone because whatever Rock wants to do, he’s likely going to be able to do. I do know that people are expecting him to appear on the show [WrestleMania 41] in some form. As for wrestling on the show, I even know people at the top who are expecting that, but it’s not a sure thing and one would think the Netflix show on 1/6 will kick off the season and tip the hand. Rock could do another match even though WWE title vs. People’s title was what he wanted after Mania.

2025 will be Cena’s final year as an in-ring competitor. His retirement tour kicks off on Raw’s Netflix premiere this coming Monday and will last through the end of the year. He’s scheduled to work around 36 dates for WWE during the retirement tour.

Rhodes is defending the Undisputed WWE Championship against Kevin Owens in a ladder match at WWE Royal Rumble on Saturday, February 1.